AIR World Service English

India’s foreign exchange (FOREX) reserves have boomed and now stands at all-time high at US$ 455 billion as on December 20, 2019. This is relatively higher than US$ 412 billion as on March 2019. The reason for surging FOREX is due to the component “Foreign Currency Assets” (FCA). It has increased 10 per cent higher, when compared to March 2019. Foreign Currency Assets are maintained as a multi-currency portfolio comprising major currencies, such as, US Dollar, Euro, Pound Sterling, Japanese Yen, etc. and are valued in terms of US Dollars. As per the RBI report, “the variations in the Foreign Currency Assets (FCA) occur mainly on account of purchase and sale of foreign exchange by the RBI, income arising out of the deployment of the foreign exchange reserves, external aid receipts of the Central Government and changes on account of revaluation of the assets”. Apart from FCA, the other three components of FOREX are Gold, SDR (Special Drawing Rights), and RTP (Reserve Tranche Po...

My dear countrymen, Namaskar. The moment to bid adieu to 2019 is round the corner knocking at our doors! In a matter of just 3 days, not only will 2019 wave good bye to us; we shall usher our selves into a new year and a new decade; the third decade of the 21st century! I extend my heartiest greetings to all countrymen on the arrival of year 2020. One thing is certain about the decade to come. And that is, it will witness the active contribution of those who were born in the 21st century, in the country’s progress; these are people who are growing up, understanding the significant issues pertaining to this century. The young people such as these, are known by myriad terms. For some they are millennials; others call them generation Z or Gen Zee too; and broadly speaking, one thing that has captured the collective psyche is that this is the ‘Social Media Generation’. All of us experience that this generation is extremely talented. It thrives on the dream to do something new, something ...

With the announcement of the preliminary results of the Presidential election in Afghanistan, the war ravaged country has crossed one more milestone towards consolidating the fledgling democratic institutions in that country. Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission has announced that incumbent President Ashraf Ghani had won the vote, having polled 50.46 per cent of the votes. Former Foreign Minister Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, who was Mr. Ghani’s nearest rival, lost by a margin of over 200,000 votes. For a country struggling to establish the supremacy of the civilian rule in the face of mindless violence unleashed by the Taliban, Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission has been quite meticulous in obviating the chances of electoral fraud. As a result, several thousand voters were disqualified after they failed the biometric tests. Even so, there have been number of complaints, and the Independent Election Commission has promised to look into each one of them. The exercise itsel...

Nepal, the home to world’s tallest peak, the 8848 meter high Mount Everest gets a good amount of revenue from mountaineering every year. It has, however, been worried over the second highest number of 11 deaths in May this year during the summit attempt. 22 deaths were recorded in 2015 when a high intensity earthquake jolted the entire Himalayan region, triggering avalanches on 25th April trapping a large number of climbers. More than 800 mountaineers tried to reach the summit this year of which a large number waited for hours in a queue in what is known as “death zone” above 8,000 meters. Everyone wanted to reach the Summit during the predicted short duration suitable weather window. This led to deaths due to exhaustion and high altitude sickness. According to Nepal government, 223 mountaineers reached the Summit in a single day on May 22 this year, breaking the previous record of 204 successful climbers in 2016. Nepal government is worried over the deadly overcrowding during the mo...

The US has “retained" Pakistan among the countries that tolerate religious discrimination. This determination of the US includes Myanmar, China, Erit­r­­ea, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan and Turkm­enistan among the states that have been re-designated as “Countries of Particular Concern (CPC)”. The US State Department makes these designations under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 and countries on the CPC list are classified as “having engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom”. Countries in this category can face further actions, including economic sanctions, by Washington. However, the Pakistan Foreign Ministry said Pakistan's designation is reflective of "selective targeting of countries, and thus unlikely to be helpful to the professed cause of advancing religious freedom". The Pakistan Foreign Office said, "Pakistan is a multi-religious and pluralistic country where people o...

By dedicating the ‘Atal Bhujal Yojna’, an ambitious water management scheme on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to the nation; India has shown its determination to lift millions of people out of water-related crisis. In fact, the country’s approach to deal with water crunch was before the world when Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his second term formed the “Jal Shakti” Ministry. It has helped in freeing the subject of water from a compartmentalized approach to a more comprehensive and holistic one. New India’s vision will not fructify unless the country’s problems are resolved in consonance with people’s expectations and aspirations. Atal Bhujal Yojna addresses not only the problem of declining groundwater level in 78 districts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka, but also helps create awareness among farmers on the need of alternative crops for cultivation. Agriculture in India is largely based ...

Oman attracts lesser international attention compared to its larger and more affluent neighbours; but it is one of the most important countries in India’s extended neighbourhood owning to its strategic location at the mouth of the Persian Gulf. The country, which remained mired in internal disturbances and lack of economic development for a long time, has made significant turnarounds under the leadership of Sultan Qaboos. The Sultan has helmed the country since 1970. Economic progress through channelizing the oil wealth for welfare of the people has brought prosperity. Under Sultan Qaboos, Oman has maintained a balanced relations with its neighbours allowing it to play an important regional role in the fractured Gulf region. Oman’s role in diffusing regional tensions and providing back channel diplomacy to resolve contentious issues underlines its importance. India recognizes the significance of Oman and has established strong bilateral relations with the country in the last few decad...

India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Iran for the 19th Session of the Joint Commission Meeting between the two countries. The Joint Commission, which is co-chaired by Foreign Ministers of India and Iran, is a mechanism to carry forward the deep ties between these two friendly countries. During his visit, Dr. Jaishankar also called on the President of Iran Dr.. Hassan Rouhani and apprised him about the developments in the Joint Commission Meeting. The Indian Foreign Minister also met the Secretary of Iranian Supreme National Security Council, Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani and Minister for Roads and Urban Development of Iran, Mohammad Eslami. These meetings are geared towards strengthening the bilateral ties between India and Iran at a time when Iran is under severe economic strain due to continued stand-off between Iran and the United States. Notably, this standoff has resulted in stringent economic and political sanctions on Iran by the US, which unilaterally withd...

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited India for the border talks with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Wang also called upon Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu. The Special Representative Talks this time were significant due to certain factors. Indian Prime Minister and Chinese President held their 2nd Informal Summit at Mamallapuram near Chennai in October 2019. At the end of the summit, both leaders had come to an understanding that more confidence building measures (CBMs) would be worked out between the two countries so that borders are peaceful. Echoing the sentiment, NSA Ajit Doval stated that leadership on both sides have “offered a new vision and strategic guidance for the development of bilateral relations and the settlement of boundary question”. The Chinese side has stated that after the talks both India and China have agreed to “formulate management rules”, and “strengthen communication and exchanges between the border forces, add border meeting points”...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asserted that the Indian economy is on the path of expansion. In the backdrop of the slowing down of GDP growth-rate, the Prime Minister reiterated that his government is committed to expand the Indian economy to 5 trillion dollars in the next five years. Prime Minister in an unequivocal reiteration of the economic policy of the government, asserted that a number of curative steps have been taken in the past which will bear results in the coming years. Addressing ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Indian Industry), which has completed 100 years, Mr. Modi made a forceful intervention to dispel the notion that Indian economy has been contracting. Indeed, much has been said about the GDP growth contracting in the past few quarters. This is also in the backdrop of the global economic slowdown. There is a trade war going on between the United States and China which is also undeniably impacting the Indian economy. There is no denying the fact that Prime Minist...

The 40th Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) Supreme Council Summit gave rise to speculations of thaw in the Saudi-Qatar relations which had entered a rough patch after the quartet of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE and Bahrain accused Qatar of supporting terrorist groups and cut off the diplomatic ties completely. Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud sent a personal invite to the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani for participating in the 2019 GCC summit in Riyadh. In response, Qatar sent its’ Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani to attend the summit which was indeed its highest representation since 2017 when Saudi Arabia intended to severe Qatar from the Arabian Peninsula and turn it into an island by digging a 200 meter wide canal ‘Salwa’ across the 61 km border with Qatar. Saudi-Qatar relations seem to be warming up owing to soft gestures on part of both the countries. Earlier this year, the Qatari Premier had visited Saudi Arabia to attend emergency security summi...

The second 2+2 meeting between the Defence and External Affairs Ministers and senior officials of India and the United States concluded successfully in Washington, DC this week. The main items on the agenda during this discussion included exchange of views on key developments in regional security environment, tackling terrorism, stabilizing Afghanistan and working towards a peaceful and stable order in the Indo-Pacific region. The most significant outcome of this meeting was signing of an agreement for cooperation in industrial security; which would now facilitate and smoothen the process of bilateral cooperation in defence research and development. In the first round of 2+2 dialogue in September last year in New Delhi, one of the crucial takeaway was signing of Communication Compatibility and Security Agreement or COMCASA for enhancing interoperability of the military forces of the two countries. The second round of 2+2 thus further enhanced the deep defence and security ties between...

Portuguese Prime Minister Mr. Antonio Costa’s first bilateral visit outside Europe, after being re-elected; to India acquires great significance for a variety of reasons. Mr. Costa has till now met Prime Minister Modi on three occasions. He visited India in January 2017 when India conferred upon him the “Pravasi Bharatiya Samman” Award. Mr Costa had also addressed the ‘Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit’ in Gandhinagar. Later in the same year the Indian Prime Minister held discussions on a wide range of issues and identified specific areas of cooperation during his visit to Portugal. Mr. Modi also hailed the contributions of the 65,000 Indians in Portugal, calling them “real ambassadors” of India. In 2018, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu had visited Portugal. Portugal is on the radar of Indian foreign policy-makers after decades of peripheral engagements. India has its pragmatic reasons to cultivate Portugal. As Prime Minister Costa has said, Portugal wants to be India’s gateway to Eu...

Pakistan is a state in which its various institutions are at loggerheads amongst themselves. Also, Pakistan has the ugly habit on discussing every Indian domestic issue. As the Indian Parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill, that has now become the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in India, Pakistan National Assembly debated this issue. Islamabad or for that matter no other country has any locus standi on the issue as it is India’s internal matter. The Citizenship Amendment Act, aims at giving Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The furore in Pakistan due to India’s CAA is because Islamabad is now shamed internationally for the treatment of its minorities. The country has a dismal record in handling its minority population, who live in deep fear of the state, which is duty bound to protect its citizens. The world has seen how fundamentalists in the country reacted to the verdict of the Pakistan Supreme Court, when it set ...

As the geopolitical churning on the concept of free and open Indo-Pacific is gaining traction, New Delhi hosted two Track 1.5 dialogues, including the 6th Indian Ocean Dialogue and Delhi Dialogue XI. The objective was to debate on the strategic conceptualisation of free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific following the pronouncement of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific in June 2019 and India’s articulation of its vision for the Indo-Pacific at the Shangri-La Dialogue in June 2018. This is the first instance when these two Track 1.5 dialogues were hosted consecutively. India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar articulated that India’s vision for Indo-Pacific includes the geographical latitude encompassing the western ocean including the Gulf and African nations as well the eastern Indian Ocean. The deliberations revolved around identifying tangible components for cooperative initiative despite nuanced divergences in each stakeholder’s interpretation of the c...

Climate change is a reality that cannot be wished away. No country in the world could remain isolated from its impacts, as it is not dependent on any one country’s actions or inactions alone. India has already started to experience the heat of the change in the climate system. Unseasonal rainfall, extreme spells of heat wave, diametrically opposite cold spells are all its consequences, and its results on food production, health, etc. The just concluded Madrid Conference on Climate Change or CoP25 deliberated on how to complete the action plan to implement the 2015 Paris Agreement from 2020. The two-weeklong conference reviewed the scientific warnings on the impact of climate change and its attendant consequences and actions to save the globe from the catastrophic cost on humankind. UN agency, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had warned that unless nations scale up their actions from the present level, we could not achieve the desired level to mitigate the dama...

The 6th Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) between India and Maldives took place in New Delhi. The meeting was chaired by the Maldives Foreign Affairs Minister Abdulla Shahid and India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar. The JCM provided an opportunity to review the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation between India and Maldives. The positive democratic transition in the Maldives in the last one year after the formation of the Solih government paved the way for enhancing bilateral cooperation covering wide range of sectors. Apart from the social sector development in Maldives through development assistance, both countries are trying to expand maritime, security and defence cooperation. India announced after the Presidential elections in Maldives, a US$ 1.4 billion economic package. Apart from this, India also announced US$ 800 million Line of Credit for critical infrastructure projects and US$ 5.6 million grant assistance for high impact community development projects. The ass...